Giving up 534 rushing yards to the Wildcats, OSU looks to rebound against Arizona State, take first conference win

On the first drive of the game, Arizona quarterback Khalil Tate marched the Wildcat offense down the field to take an early 7-0 lead—and they never looked back.

Like many other teams this season, the Oregon State defense had no answer for the Arizona offense. The Wildcats piled on 534 rushing yards, with 384 of them coming in the first half. Tate alone had 206 rushing yards and two touchdowns.

The game was out of hand early, as the Beavers found themselves down 28-0 at halftime. With only 82 yards in the first half, interim head coach Cory Hall was looking at his largest deficit since taking over.

The Beavers found the majority of their offensive success in the second half. Senior quarterback Darell Garretson finished the game with a career-high four touchdown passes and 209 yards through the air. Running back Ryan Nall finished the game with 95 rushing yards, moving him to ninth in the all-time rushing yards

at Oregon State.

Tight end Noah Togiai ended the game with 56 receiving yards and one touchdown.

On the defensive side, Safety Jalen Moore led the team with nine solo tackles.

Going into the game, linebacker Manase Hungalu had been named the Pac-12’s defensive player of the week for his 20-tackle performance against Cal the previous weekend. However, Hungalu’s performance against Arizona was noticebly less impactful. He finished the game with six tackles.

Arizona would finish the game with only 68 passing yards—but their run game all but made up for the lack of productivity through the air. Three Wildcat players ran for over 100 yards, setting the school record in total rushing yards. Arizona finished with 543 yards on the ground.

The Beaver defense only forced one punt all night and snagged an interception in the first quarter.

The loss drops the Beavers to 1-9 on the season and 0-7 in the Pac-12. This is Oregon State’s 18th road loss in a row, stemming from the 2014 season. The Beavers next opportunity at a road win will be against Oregon in the Civil War, or they must for the 2018 season opener against Ohio State.

The Beavers have two more games to avoid going win-less in the Pac-12 for the second time in three years. Without a win, Oregon State faces the worst finish to a season since 1995.

For now, Oregon State looks forward to a home showdown with Arizona State on Family Weekend. The Sun Devils (5-5) are coming off a 44-37 loss to UCLA which puts them at third in the Pac-12.

Arizona State has defied expectations this year, needing only one win to become bowl eligible. They are led by quarterback Manny Wilkins who has 12 touchdown passes on the season. The defense sits at 8th in the Pac-12 in total defense, allowing 455 yards a game.

Running backs Demario Richard and Kalen Ballage have combined for 12 touchdowns this season, along with six rushing touchdowns from Wilkins.

The last time the two teams met was back in November of 2014, when the Beavers upset the No. 6 ranked Sun Devils. It will be the first meeting of the schools since ex-head coach Mike Riley left.

The game is set for a noon kick-off, the Beavers’ earliest start time since September.